Pension - Hargreaves Lansdown v Vanguard

[MrPickles73]

I am self employed. I have a SIPP and an ISA with Hargreaves Lansdown. I like their customer service and am used to using the platform but am aware it is expensive.

I have some spare cash to invest in more SIPP. I am wondering whether to add this to my Hargreaves Lansdown SIPP or whether to start a Vanguard LifeStrategy SIPP? Does anyone have any experience (good / bad of the Vanguard Lifestrategy? Thankyou

I was with HL for a couple of years. Good place for access to lots of funds. When I decided to go down the route of using Vanguard funds, I moved investments into a Vanguard Lifestrategy fund at HL, then, opened a Vanguard Investor account and requested a transfer in. That took time but as it was moving the fund 'in-specie' I was not out of the market during the move.

Vanguard Investor has a lot less choice of funds, but once you have decided on an investment strategy you should not be needing to change funds. Buying units is easy, I have it on automatic monthly amount.

You save 0.3% typically in management fee by moving. Does not sound a lot but over a long period it could add up to quite a bit.

nannynick are you satisfied with the return?

Yes. The LS fund I choose has a high amount of equities in it so it goes up and down quite a bit, but that is to be expected.

You can also access the Vanguard Lifestrategy accumulation funds via Dodl at the same price (.22% for the fund and .15% for the platform). It is a simple app based Sipp from AJ Bell, but is arguably more flexible than Vanguard if you just want the Lifestrategy accumulation funds, as there is no minimum amount to invest (after an initial £100).

Like you I hold most of my Sipp with Hargreaves Lansdown, but now contribute to Lifestrategy via Dodl as it is a considerable saving in platform cost (.30% to be exact).

I put in a set amount per month, but also add the odd £5 or £10 periodically through the month if I feel like it (in my case I "buy my Sipp a pint" also, whenever it's my round).

In the past few years, I too have been thinking of divorcing HL and going to another provider but so far HL has continued to benefit from my inertia! Between us, DH and I pay thousands of pounds a year in HL fees and I do often ask myself if it's worth it.

Can I ask if the Vanguard SIPP is good for drawdown when the time comes you want to withdraw ?

If you hold ETFs with HL then your fees are capped at £200 a year. Makes a huge saving over holding regular funds. And plenty of low cost tracker ETFs available.

Similar inertia here, I keep thinking I should move from HL to Vanguard due to the fees but haven’t so far. I like the ease of use and familiarity of HL plus the app and don’t find my kids JISAs on Vanguard as easy to navigate, but that isn’t really worth the extra cost!

I have an isa on vanguard but I do wonder if relying on the LS funds is sensible. What about A J Bell?